Johnny Depp is fresh from starring in the highly-rated film marking his first leading role in three years since the highly-publicised defamation trial with ex-wife Amber Heard.

The 59-year-old attended the Cannes Film Festival where he addressed his apparent '17th comeback' to the Hollywood industry brought about by his role in Jeanne du Barry directed by French filmmaker Maïwenn.

The flick in question, a biographical drama film that tells the tale of King Louis XV's mistress, has since received mass critical acclaim.

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At long last, the Cannes Film Festival is finally back after having commenced yesterday (16 May) and is set to run until the end of the month (27 May).

Opening the renowned film fest was Depp's highly-anticipated return to the red carpet following his legal battles with Heard.

The highly-publicised trial wrapped up in June of last year which coincided with the actor being dropped from the Fantastic Beasts franchise as well as his departure from the Pirates of the Caribbean film saga.

But it seems Depp is back after this brief hiatus from La La Land after starring as France's King Louis XV in the period drama.

The movie has been directed and produced by Maïwenn and sees Depp joined by the likes of Pierre Richard, Benjamin Lavernhe, Noémie Lvovsky, Pascal Greggory, Melvil Poupaud and India Hair.

The film's plot follows Jeanne (Maïwenn), a young working-class woman hungry for culture and pleasure, who uses her intelligence and allure to climb the rungs of the social ladder one by one.

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It continues: "She becomes the favourite of King Louis XV who, unaware of her status as courtesan, regains through her his appetite for life.

"They fall madly in love and, against all propriety and etiquette, Jeanne moves to Versailles, where her arrival scandalises the court."

The film screening went on to receive a seven-minute standing ovation with The Independent rating it four out of five stars, noting it was 'surprisingly great'.

Jeanne du Barry currently sits at 64 percent on Rotten Tomatoes' 'Tomatometer' with one of the site's top critics reviewing it as: "A perfectly serviceable entry in a genre born of the stage and perfected by Old Hollywood: the star showcase."

It's clearly garnered some mixed reviews, however, with another critic writing: "A movie that’s very occasionally too tasteful for its own good. But it’s also mature and grounded..."

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A third added: "Maïwenn’s Jeanne du Barry is both glamorous and French, but is it dire, as Cannes tradition dictates? Well, no it isn’t, but it isn’t very good either."

In his re-emergence back into the limelight, Depp addressed his relationship with Hollywood.

Speaking on a panel yesterday, the actor said: "Did I feel boycotted by Hollywood? You’d have to not have a pulse to feel like, 'No. None of this is happening. It’s a weird joke'.

"When you’re asked to resign from a film you’re doing because of something that is merely a function of vowels and consonants floating in the air, yes, you feel boycotted."

He continued: "I don’t feel boycotted by Hollywood, because I don’t think about Hollywood.

"It’s a strange, funny time where everybody would love to be able to be themselves, but they can’t. They must fall in line with the person in front of them. If you want to live that life, I wish you the best."

Depp went on to dismiss the claims that Cannes marked his 'comeback' to the biz, stating: "I’ve had my 17th comeback, apparently.

"I keep wondering about the word 'comeback'. I didn’t go anywhere… Maybe people stopped calling out of whatever their fear was at the time. But I didn’t go nowhere."

Jeanne du Barry is currently awaiting a UK release date.